Artist

Music Venues Directory

http://www.facebook.com/2016mainstage This ground-level nightclub has anchored the condominium/retail complex at 2016 Main for years, but Mainstage has undergone a major renovation since it was known as Sammy's. The interior cast in a blue light gives 2016 an air of electricity, as house music and DJ nights get people on the dance floor, and most Fridays brings party-rocking cover bands like the Spazmatics. Now open Wednesday through Saturday, Mainstage plans to add Sundays soon. A few small VIP landings offer a semblance of privacy, and the back room (available for reservations) is a cozy little lounge awash in red décor, with its own bar to boot. Parking is still a hassle in the area, but if you don't mind walking a few blocks from your car, you should be aces. More >>

http://www.bayoumusiccenter.com Home for mid-level national touring acts, mostly rock and country artists either on the rise or past their commercial heyday, the Bayou Music Center can accommodate a mosh pit one night and cabaret seating the next. With excellent sound, sight lines and -- most important -- easy-access restrooms, you can fill your bladder on overly priced beer and empty it while missing only a couple of choruses. More >>

http://www.bigtoplounge.com The Big Top is the little brother of the Continental Club next door and the surlier cousin of uber-hipster watering hole The Mink around the corner. This block is one of Houston's most colorful, its restaurants and music venues teeming with life on the weekends. As hinted in its moniker, the Big Top is heavy on circus decor, festooned with dusty, quaint portraits and signs from that bygone yet uniquely American era of hucksters and freak shows. But that is just a small part of the bar's story. Live music happens most nights the Big Top is open, from garage-rock DJs to various Americana and covers acts playing under a big birdcage in the corner of the bar. If you feel like getting some fresh air under the stars, the back door opens onto the Continental's backyard and the outdoor Pachinko Hut bar. More >>

http://www.birrarestaurant.com The downtown location really packs 'em in, with tables so close together you can reach out and touch someone. The service is at its most erratic before the theater. At other times, you may enjoy decent if overpriced Italian food and a remarkably fine thin-crust pizza. It's nice that you can choose whichever kind of pasta you like and top it with your favorite sauce. Pleasant bar area with excellent happy-hour specials. And great chocolate mousse. More >>

http://www.houseofblues.com/venues/clubvenues/houston/ Right off to the side of the main stage at House of Blues, you'll find the Bronze Peacock Room. It's dead-on perfect for smaller bands who can't quite fill up HOB's bigger hall, and quite ideal for more intimate performances. There's an adequate bar, tables and even its own staffed smoking lounge off to the side (complete with a bartender). More >>

http://www.continentalclub.com This is the linchpin of "The Island" off Main, catering to every roots, rockabilly and country soul in town. Most any day of the week, one can walk in and plop down at the bar and unwind with the help of a cold Lone Star, great company, and some local music. If the Continental Club doesn't make your Texas heart jump just a little inside your chest, then you are doing something wrong. Also be sure to check out the Pachinko Hut out back when the weather is just right, manned by bartender Big E, who is also playing great B-movies in the background. More >>

http://www.discoverygreen.com A vast prairie of little-used parking lots downtown was replaced by Discovery Green, a dozen or so acres of green space, bocce courts, lakes, water parks, performance spaces and restaurants. Sure, the name of the place is meh and they got a little sponsor-happy, but when you take in a concert or visit a farmers market at Discovery Green, you really feel like Houston is giving Chicago a run for its money as America's third city. More >>

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Doctors-Office/158604807624892 The Doctor's Office is a DIY music venue that is just down the street from the original Houston DIY, House of Creeps. They're working to become a venue for local and out-of-town artists and musicians, converting an old doctor's office into a space where, they say, "You will listen to music and have trouble remembering it the next day." Not much could be better than that, eh? More >>

A downtown mainstay for almost 15 years, Echo is split in two by a bar that nearly takes up the entire room. This creates a lounge area complete with couches and a few small tables to the right of the entrance, with a large square hole in the bar wall that allows patrons to order without crossing to the other side of the room. Next door to Groundhall and formerly known as Jet Lounge, Echo hosts live acts at least five nights a week on its corner stage. It's a dark place, but the bar wall's changing colored lights aid visibility, while the metal hearts suspended from the ceiling draw eyes toward the stage. Echo's only drawback seems to be the parking situation, especially on nights when something is transpiring at Toyota Center a couple of blocks north. More >>

http://www.fwdhouston.com This Midtown spot just might be Houston's least pretentious dance club. FWD doesn't care about your sharp duds or your fly kicks, and certainly isn't gunning to be a flavor-of-the-month bar. Sleek white couches line the walls, with high-walled curved corner booths providing some space to conceal a group. The sound system is loud, with house, techno, and club music pulsing and pounding through the room courtesy of both local DJs and out-of-town guests. (If it gets too loud, try out the large patio.) Refreshingly, everyone seems to be here for the music rather than being seen. More >>

http://www.houseofblues.com/venues/clubvenues/houston/ From its traditional, Southern-inspired fine dining to its down-home
Creole cuisine, this place rocks, literally. The one-of-a-kind
interior boasts one of the largest folk art collections in the
country with art on every flat surface. The Voodoo Shrimp with Dixie
Beer reduction is a must-try, as is the smoked turkey and shrimp
gumbo. Be sure to leave room for the white chocolate banana bread
pudding, which is heavenly. The plush, private, members-only Foundation
Room is also available. More >>

http://www.houstonfirsttheaters.com/JonesHall.aspx With wall-to-wall red carpet, Houston's old faithful anchors the Theater District. This general-purpose music hall might seem a bit tame by today's standards, but its stage has seen everyone from Minnie Riperton to Mariachi Vargas and Yo-Yo Ma. More >>